Heavy-duty flail toppers are a cut above the rest

Written by Spaldings - 16/11/2016 10:51:10

Direct sales specialist Spaldings has added a range of flail toppers to its field equipment product line that offers farmers and contractors a long-lasting investment designed to cope with a demanding workload.

The heavy-duty implements come in sizes from 1.8m to 2.8m rigid, 4.8m and 6.1m folding and 2.2m with a swing arm offset mechanism. The 2.5m and 2.8m models have hydraulic side-shift.

All the flail mowers are tractor rear-mounted but the 2.5m and 2.8m TMS models have a twin headstock so they can be operated on the front or rear tractor hitch and are suitable for use with reverse-drive tractors.

Steel chains or flaps prevent objects being thrown forwards without impeding progress in dense vegetation and a full-width steel roller regulates working height to protect the flails and prevent scalping.

“The machines are produced by TMC Cancela, a manufacturer based in northern Spain that uses the engineering standards it applies to forestry equipment for this range of agricultural toppers,” says Alex Smith, Spaldings product development co-ordinator. “They are not the cheapest machines of their type but they are engineered to do the job well without giving trouble, and to last a long time.”

All models from 2.5m upwards have a six-belt drive pulley for the thick-walled (12mm) flail rotor, with fan blades built into the large pulley to avoid any likelihood of the belts over-heating. Interchangeable pulleys adapt the machines to 540 and 1000rpm tractor pto speeds.

For extra heavy-duty applications, selected models have TMC Cancela’s Boltop flail coupling, which provides a socket connection between the 27mm bolts and lugs on the rotor such that the bolt head is completely embedded in the lug and cannot come loose. On other models, the 20mm and 24mm flail bolts are significantly larger than the 16mm bolts typically used on other makes of flail topper.

Strenx performance steels are used in all but the medium-duty TP-180, providing the flexibility to cope with impacts and stress loads while being much stronger than mild steel so the machines can be built for durability without being overly heavy.

Other notable features include an freewheel gearbox on all models, adjustable rear hood on TJL-280, TJP-480 and TJP-610 models, and optional lighting and reflector kits.